Educator Resources by R.E.A.L. Parents x SPF

Resources for Educators

This page is in response to questions and information requests we often receive from educators about increasing the Representation, Equity, Antiracism and Literary Diversity in their schools' libraries, lessons and leaders. It will be updated regularly, often with materials we have shared in our weekly newsletter.

If you are an educator with resources you'd like to share with us, please email us at any time. We'd love to hear from you.

For other resources, including information local to our Scotch Plains-Fanwood school district, please visit our main Resources page.

Table of Contents

Lesson Plans & Curriculum Resources
Training & Professional Development
Free Posters & Printables
Other “R.E.A.L.” Tools & Tips
R.E.A.L. Parents x SPF Book Lists
Educator Grants
FAQs on Bias & Inclusion Training for Educators
FAQs on Critical Race Theory
About R.E.A.L. Parents x SPF

See Also:

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LESSON PLANS, CURRICULUM RESOURCES

Facing History and Ourselves: Educator Resources
"Our collection of educator resources includes a wide range of flexible, multimedia materials, from primary sources and streaming videos to teaching strategies, lesson plans, and full units.
Find resources that will support your students' learning, whether you are teaching a complex moment in history or addressing today's breaking news."

Center for Antiracist Education: Teaching Resources
The curriculum choices educators make can go a long way toward advancing antiracism. CARE’s tools and library invite you to think about your resources and make better choices.

Anti-Defamation League (ADL): Resources for Educators, Parents & Families

Educational Programs & Training
Anti-Bias Tools and Strategies
Books Matter: Children's Literature
Lesson Plans
Professional Learning for Educators
Bullying and Cyberbullying Prevention Resources
Education Blogs
Question Corner: Early Childhood FAQs
Education Webinars and Podcasts
Recursos en Español / Resources in Spanish

Learning for Justice: Classroom Resources
Learning for Justice is a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Lessons
Learning Plans
Student Texts
Student Tasks
Teaching Strategies
Lesson Plan Builder
Film Kits
(And more)

An Educator's Guide to Expanding Narratives about American History & Culture
PBS
"This collection has been carefully selected by New York City educator and curriculum consultant Vivett Dukes to showcase ideas, achievements, and contributions by American people of all backgrounds across eras.
The content highlighted within each topic is intended to expand the scope of voices traditionally centered in classroom curricula by elevating stories by and about Black, Indigenous, and People of Color."

Top Five Social Studies Resources for Teachers in 2023
Facing History and Ourselves
"The data experts at Facing History have analyzed the social studies resources that educators used the most over the course of 2023. Our top five list for the year makes for easy classroom integration and connection with what your fellow teachers rely on.
Whether you’re interested in modular components or a full arc of learning, our most popular work in social studies offers many different topics of interest and styles of learning to complement your lesson plans.
The following selections are often part of wider Facing History collections, so in addition to interacting with user favorite content, you might discover a deeper well of curriculum that can enrich your implementation of this list."
The list includes:

Top Social Studies Lesson: The Rise of the Nazi Party
Top Social Studies Inquiry: Angel Island Immigration Station: Exploring Borders and Belonging in US History.
Top Social Studies Video: Race: The Power of an Illusion (The Story We Tell).
Top Social Studies Video: Defining Confirmation Bias.
Top Social Studies Reading: Women Rise Up Against Apartheid and Change the Movement

U.S. History Collection
PBS Learning Media
"Expand students’ understanding of U.S. History with culturally inclusive resources that bring the major people, events, and trends in history alive, while integrating often untold stories into the curriculum.

Curated clips of trusted PBS programs and a diverse array of other media and interactive resources develop students’ historical thinking skills while broadening their appreciation of history’s multiple perspectives and complexity."

Diversity in Civics
Lee and Low Books
"Civics and civic engagement are crucial to education and the preservation of our democracy. The key concepts of understanding how government works, engaging in and appreciating discourse and different beliefs, learning about the voting process, and working with the community are critical to students’ academic success and wellbeing. The state of civics education is in great need: students need to learn about all aspects of civics to be effective members of society.

"The list is organized by the following categories: leadership, youth and community activism, productive and respectful debate and conversations, initiating awareness and change, principles of governments; global citizenship; and America past & present to fit all of your civics curricular needs."

Fostering Civil Discourse: Difficult Classroom Conversations in a Diverse Democracy
Facing History and Ourselves
"Research shows that discussing contemporary issues in the classroom increases students’ engagement, improves their communication and critical thinking skills, and increases their participation in civic life as adults. Yet classroom conversations that touch on emotional topics or spark controversy between students can be difficult to navigate.

This guide is designed to help teachers hold meaningful and productive conversations with their students about public policies, controversial issues, and current events. It offers tools and teaching strategies that can make fostering civil discourse in the classroom feel less overwhelming and challenging"

Lesson Plans: Why Local Elections Matter
SPLC Leaarning for Justice
Grades 6-8, 9-12
"In this lesson, students explore the ways that decisions by local government affect their lives.
They’ll review research and data about a few recent local elections to push back against the myth that a single vote doesn’t count.
They’ll learn how laws in their state encourage or suppress voter engagement.
And in an extension activity, eligible students learn how to register to vote."

Prebunking Election Fraud: Strategies to Confront Conspiracy Theories
National Council for the Social Studies
Grades 7-12
"This article discusses "prebunking" strategies for secondary teachers to prime students' understanding of election integrity before election season.
Prebunking, an idea derived from research in political psychology, is a strategy to thoughtfully engage with this troubling issue without elevating baseless claims of election fraud.
Given the likelihood that students will be exposed to election fraud conspiracy theories, prebunking these claims can serve as a form of “inoculation” against the disinformation students are likely to encounter."

Intro to the Work of Historians
Stanford History Education Group
"This lesson introduces students to the work of historians. Students practice sourcing and contextualization as they investigate the historical figure Biddy Mason, an African American woman who lived in Los Angeles in the 19th century, fought her enslavement, and won.

While this lesson centers on one historical figure, it can be used in any history class as a general introduction to the work of historians, primary sources, and archives.”

The 1619 Project: Education Materials Collection

Curricular Resources
Webinars on Demand
Teacher's Guides for BORN ON THE WATER and A NEW ORIGIN STORY
K-12 Curriculum Guide for The 1619 Project books

How a Harlem school uses The 1619 Project in teaching history
Chalkbeat New York by Christina Veiga

The Amistad Commission
NJ Department of Education
Information about and resources for upholding the Amistad legislation in New Jersey.

Why Frederick Douglass and Rep. Justin Pearson discussed the Fourth of July in their speeches Lesson Plan
PBS
Subjects: High school history, social studies, civics, English (45 minutes).

African American History Resources
Sankofa Collaborative
They offer "links to curriculum guides, databases, suggested readings and other resources intended to support the work of K-12 educators who want to incorporate African American history, culture and experience into their lesson plans.”

Five Ways to Avoid Whitewashing the Civil Rights Movement
Learning for Justice
“Going beyond feel-good narratives and examining context helps students learn a fuller and more accurate account of black history, including the often-oversimplified history of the civil rights movement.”

Teaching African American History: Acts of Resistance
Smithsonian Office of Educational Technology
"Join educators from the National Museum of African American History and Culture to explore an expanding set of free digital materials on African American history, “North Star: A Digital Journey.”

Designed for grades 6–12, the set features stories and throughlines from the museum’s permanent exhibitions. Using images, documents, videos, and checks for understanding, students and their adults can investigate and think critically about history.

In this session, we’ll focus on individual and community resistance. You’ll gain content knowledge applicable to teaching about slavery in the U.S. context as well as familiarity with the free online resources of “North Star: A Digital Journey.”

This interactive webinar is part of “Cultivating Learning,” a professional development webinar series focusing on techniques to use digital museum resources for learning." See the Learning Lab here.

Resources Supporting Black History Month Observances for K-12 Educators
DiscoveryEd.
A "new collection of engaging, high-quality digital learning resources supporting Black History Month observances" is now available.

Books on Black History and Life
Facing History and Ourselves
"We have seen many landmark events in Black history over the last few years, ranging from the explosion of the Black Lives Matter movement to the election of the first Black female Vice President of the United States. Determining how to structure reflection on these subjects in the classroom can be challenging, and one way to get started is to prioritize our own learning through reading.

These books offer vital insight into the richness of Black history and some of the underacknowledged complexities of Black contemporary life. The following titles provide an array of perspectives on these matters and range in format from historical essay and biography to memoir, poetry, young adult, and more.”

Erasing the Black Freedom Struggle: How State Standards Fail to Teach the Truth About Reconstruction
Teach Reconstruction Report
"This report asks four fundamental questions:

Do state social studies educational standards for K–12 schools recommend or require students to learn about Reconstruction?
Is the content that state standards recommend or require on Reconstruction historically accurate and reflective of modern scholarship?
What would an ideal set of historically accurate state standards on Reconstruction look like?
What are some efforts underway to give the Reconstruction era the time and perspective it deserves?

Before answering those questions, we must first understand what Reconstruction was, why people in the United States often struggle to remember it, and why it remains so relevant today."

Investigating Environmental Racism in the High School Biology Classroom Lesson Guide
National Science Teaching Association by Jason Foster
"I once taught my ecology unit with a very canonical, traditional structure. But I am passionate about antiracism, and wanted to center my teaching on this practice. Now my units are based on justice-centered phenomena, ones that encourage my students to ask complicated questions about the role of science in their community.”

A Resource for Black History & Excellence
Because of Them We Can
A new resource hub that provides information on and worksheets about Black individuals who featured prominently in civil rights, STEM, movements, the arts and sports.

Schoolopolis!
A global village for educational technology.

Is it Legit? 5 Steps to Vetting a News Source
News Literacy Project
For Grades: 4-6, 7-9, 10-12+
"Many sources compete for attention online, including partisan blogs and bogus sites posing as legitimate news organizations. It can be tough to know what information to trust. So what does “credibility” look like, and how can you recognize it?
We partnered with SmartNews, a news app for mobile devices, to bring you five steps for vetting news sources. The steps outlined in this infographic can help you cut through the noise and learn how to evaluate sources for signs of credibility – as well as for red flags that signal a source should be avoided"

Ten Quick Ways to Analyze Childrens Books for Sexism and Racism
From ANTI-BIAS CURRICULUM: TOOLS FOR EMPOWERING YOUNG CHILDREN
By Louise Derman-Sparks and the A.B.C. Task Force

Book Résumés
Unite Against Book Bans
"Book Résumés help teachers, librarians, parents, and community members defend books from censorship. They detail each title’s significance and educational value and are easy to share with administrators, book review committees, elected officials, and board members."

18 Teacher Resources on Native American History and Culture
Facing History and Ourselves
"Below are 18 resources that middle and high school teachers can turn to when developing lesson plans related to the roles of Native American peoples in American history and contemporary life.

These resources include online exhibitions at the Smithsonian; the Smithsonian’s Native Knowledge 360° Educational Initiative; the work of the Mitchell and Hood Museums; and the growing work of Facing History in these thematic areas."

Check Your Curriculum: Are Native Americans in the Past Tense?
Zinn Education Project
"For Native American Heritage Month, we highly recommend the article “‘All Indians Are Dead?’ At Least That’s What Most Schools Teach Children,” based on a study called “Manifesting Destiny: Re/presentations of Indigenous Peoples in K–12 U.S. History Standards” by Sarah B. Shear, et al. (“Manifesting Destiny” is made available here with permission from Theory and Research in Social Education.)

The article can inspire an examination of the curriculum and books in our schools...

Following the article, we list lessons, books, and films from the Zinn Education Project website to fill the gap."

Celebrate Native American Heritage
by SPLC: Learning for Justice
"resources to honor and teach the truth about Native peoples and to help ensure that learning about this heritage takes place all year long”

Indigenous Peoples Lesson Plans and Resources
Share My Lesson Plan
Free PreK-12 collection of resources in preparation for Native American Heritage Month this November.

"You can also find more resources from the National Museum of the American Indian. Additionally, use this link from Native Land Digital to learn where different Indigenous peoples territories were prior to colonization."

Books for Kids: Celebrate Native American Heritage Month
by Scotch Plains Public Library

Indigenous Reads Rising
We Need Diverse Books
For those seeking resources for educational or personal interest purposes, We Need Diverse Books has recently launched Indigenous Reads Rising, "a celebration of Indigenous children’s literature of Native Nations, centering those within the United States and Canada.”

Building Insights to Navigate Antisemitism & Hate: Understanding Anti Semitism Lesson Plans, Grades 9-12
Anti-Defamation League
"BINAH...is a digital course developed in partnership with the Anti-Defamation League that motivates students to identify as global citizens with respect for all people, regardless of the makeup of their school community.

Designed to integrate into Social Studies, ELA, or SEL curriculum, it can be taught in conjunction with teaching about the Holocaust, or as an independent lesson. Topics include the impact of antisemitic attacks on American society as a whole, the vast diversity of modern Jewish life, and how to be a strong ally.

The first-person narrative storyline will help students to understand the history of antisemitism and connect past events with those happening in the present.”

9 Ideas for Teaching Jewish American Heritage Month Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Grade Level: K-12
Common Core Standards: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, Language
SEL Standards*: Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, Responsible Decision Making

Teaching for Equity and Justice in the Context of Jewish Education
Facing History & Ourselves
"This self-paced online workshop has been tailored specifically for educators in Jewish settings as they move to more equitable practices that enable all students to find their voice and civic agency, become critical thinkers, and be fully engaged in their education.”

24 Books for Teaching the Holocaust
Scholastic
A curated selection of powerful fiction and nonfiction books to help teach students in grades 1–12 about the Holocaust.

Filipinx American History Month Resources for Teachers
For educators (PreK-8) who are looking to honor Filipinx American History Month

Hispanic Heritage Month Materials
Stanford History Education Group
"September 15-October 15 is National Hispanic Heritage Month. We have free history lessons and assessments to teach Hispanic, U.S. Latino, and Latin American history this month and year-round. Materials with an asterisk (*) are available to download in Spanish."

Korematsu v. United States (1944) Lesson Plan
iCivics
"This mini-lesson [for grades 6-8 and 9-12 ] covers the basics of the Supreme Court’s decision that determined the government acted constitutionally when it detained people of Japanese ancestry inside internment camps during World War II.

Students learn what internment camps were, the background behind the government’s decision to detain those of Japanese ancestry, and the reasons the government upheld that decision."

Asian and Pacific Islander History Materials
Digital Inquiry Group
"May is Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month.
We have thirty-nine free history lessons and assessments to teach Asian and Pacific Islander history this month and year-round.
Materials with an asterisk (*) are available to download in Spanish."

Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month Resources
National Council for the Social Studies
"For Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, NCSS editors have curated this selection of articles and resources from Social Education and Social Studies and the Young Learner."

Judy Heumann and Disability Rights Activism Lesson Plan
ADL
"This [elementary and middle school] lesson provides an opportunity for students to learn about Judy Heumann and her disability rights activism and to consider the ways in which our schools, communities and society need to continue to address the rights and fair treatment of people with disabilities.”

American Sign Language Resources
PBS Kids Learning Materials
"The content in the American Sign Language (ASL) collection highlights PBS KIDS’ commitment to helping all kids learn by expanding accessibility with the addition of new ASL streaming content."
Includes Video (17), Media Gallery (16) for Grades PreK-K, K-2 , Resources in Spanish (16)

Books for Autism and Neurodiversity Awareness Month
Scotch Plains Public Library

Books for Arab American Heritage Month
Libraries of Middlesex Automation Consortium

Books for National Poetry Month for Kids
Scotch Plains Public Library

Books in Which Authors Explore Jewish Identity
School Library Journal

Best Multicultural Children’s Books of 2023
The Center for the Study of Multicultural Children’s Literature
Read/print the detailed PDF list here.

Seven YA Books that Center Hispanic Heritage
Facing History and Ourselves
"Engage your students with this curated list for Hispanic American Heritage Month.
These YA titles come from Facing History staff recommendations.
Included is a bonus teacher-focused book selection."

Go to Table of Contents.

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TRAINING, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, ETC.

Free Post-Bacc Certificate in Teaching the Holocaust and Prejudice Reduction
Kean University
“This four-course, 12 credit certificate is designed for teachers and other educators in K-12 schools and responds to New Jersey's mandate to teach about Holocaust, genocide, and prejudice in New Jersey public schools.

All courses are taught at Kean and at local school districts and are also electives in the Kean University Master of Arts in Holocaust and Genocide Studies program. Each course provides three (3) graduate credits and forty-five (45) professional development hours from Kean University. ”

Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students
by Zaretta Hammond
Book | Audiobook | eBook
Free webinar on "how to use culturally responsive teaching to re-ignite authentic student engagement and accelerate learning" by the author of the book.

The Successful Middle School: This We Believe
by Penny A. Bishop Ed.D., Lisa Harrison Ph.D.
Book | eBook
Online courses tied to the book.

International Literacy Association
Online learning, resources and community for educators.

Diversifying Classroom Texts
SPLC Learning for Justice Workshops: On-Demand Webinars
Duration: 1 hour, 16 minutes
"Join antiracist education experts Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul and Tricia Ebarvia together with Learning for Justice for this thought-provoking webinar highlighting the importance of diversifying classroom texts, especially in this current climate.
Participants will learn best practices for how to center and explore the diverse experiences of Black and Brown people and the communities they intersect and how to advocate for their rightful place in curriculum, classrooms, and school communities."

Book Résumés
Unite Against Book Bans
"Book Résumés help teachers, librarians, parents, and community members defend books from censorship. They detail each title’s significance and educational value and are easy to share with administrators, book review committees, elected officials, and board members."
Learn more at their FAQs page here.

Supporting Multilingual Students in the Early Grades
Edutopia
Five ways teachers can celebrate and extend the linguistic expertise of young students who speak two or more languages.

Cultivating Young Multilingual Writers: Nurturing Voices and Stories in and beyond the Classroom Walls
Latinx Kidlit Book Festival
"Dr. Tracey Flores and Dr. María E. Fránquiz (National Council of Teachers of English President), authors of a new book in the Principles in Practice Series of NCTE, offer portraits of classroom teachers in Arizona and Texas. These portraits provide concrete examples of ways children’s literature is used to highlight the voices and stories of young bi/multilingual writers."

Supporting and Affirming Immigrant Students and Families
SPLC Learning for Justice Workshops: On-Demand Webinars
Duration: 1 hour, 9 minutes
"Join Learning for Justice, experts from ImmSchools and the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Immigrant Justice Project for a webinar on supporting immigrant students and families.
In this webinar, participants will gain an understanding of the current realities and challenges facing affected communities. You will learn about the importance of approaching this work with an asset-based lens.
You’ll also become familiar with the legal obligations of supporting immigrant students.
Finally, you’ll gain insights into assessing current local policies and practices and become familiar with resources for advocating for positive change."

Centering Disabilities in the Classroom
Lee and Low Books
"Watch the recording for an informative discussion about the development of Tenacious, the difference between person-first and identity-first language, and how to select quality texts that reflect the lived experiences of the many kinds of young people in your classroom or library. Learn effective and realistic techniques on how to create a classroom community that’s inclusive of all learners.”

What Educators Don’t Know About ADHD (and Need To)
with ADHD Expert Evelyn Polk Green, M.S.Ed., past president of both ADDA (the Attention Deficit Disorder Association) and CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder)
Wed. 9/20/23

"In this webinar, educators will learn:

Commons facts and fallacies about ADHD
Surprising ways ADHD might present in the classroom for different populations
Why working with families of students with ADHD is important and how to do it well
Evidence-based classroom accommodations for students with ADHD (and others) that can be easily implemented"

How Does Anxiety Affect Kids in School?
The Child Mind Institute
"What it looks like, and why it's often mistaken for something else."
See also:

What to Do (and Not Do) When Children Are Anxious | How to respect feelings without empowering fears

Trauma Responsive Education: Supporting Students and Yourself
SPLC Learning for Justice Workshops: On-Demand Webinars
Duration: 1 hour, 22 minutes
"Co-hosted by former LFJ Advisory Board members Kinette Richards, Ph.D., school psychologist, and Barbie Garayúa Tudryn, school counselor, this webinar will help you gain a common understanding of trauma and how it affects both learning and relationships at school—for students and educators alike.
It will also examine ways to recognize trauma in students and address it, both virtually and in person. Finally, you’ll learn about tools to build strong relationships and address trauma in your school."

Addressing Grief: Tips for Teachers and Administrators
National Association of School Psychologists
“School-based support and increased understanding are essential when a student experiences the death of a friend or loved one. While each student will be affected differently depending on his or her developmental level, cultural beliefs, personal characteristics, family situation, and previous experiences. There are some strategies that can be helpful in supporting bereaved students”

How to Teach Kids About Microaggressions
On Our Sleeves: The Movement for Children’s Mental Health
“If you’d like to teach your [students or] children to be open-minded and respectful as well as more informed on microaggressions, try these ideas”

A Guide to Responding To Microaggressions
The Grainger College of Engineering: Women in Engineering
“People may demonstrate their biases and prejudices in more subtle ways, otherwise known as microaggressions.” Here are ways to respond to them.

Speak Up: Responding to Everyday Bigotry
SPLC
“The Southern Poverty Law Center gathered hundreds of stories of everyday bigotry from people across the United States. They told their stories through e-mail, personal interviews and at roundtable discussions in four cities. People spoke about encounters in stores and restaurants, on streets and in schools. No matter the location or relationship, the stories echo each other.”

Here are some of those examples, and ways to respond in various scenarios.

Building an Anti-Ableist Pedagogy: An Instructional Strategy Guide
ASCD by Suzanne Stolz
"To ensure that all students can bring their whole selves to the classroom, educators must take steps to counter cultural assumptions about who belongs.

In an ableist society, perceiving disability in deficit terms is the norm—and this deficit model can show up in even the most skilled educators’ teaching practice, says Suzanne Stolz. Educators must examine their biases and hidden curriculum in their schools—the subtle messages conveyed through everyday practices that, for example, devalue interdependence and help-seeking. Drawing on disability studies, Stolz outlines four exercises for building an anti-ableist pedagogy."

Caring for Gender Expansive Youth
ACSD
"Educators must take proactive and reactive steps to keep schools safe and welcoming places for non-binary students.”

3 Tips for Making Your Classroom More Gender Inclusive
Edutopia
"Helping gender-expansive students feel seen and included doesn’t have to be complicated—and it benefits everyone in the class."

A Guide to Practicing Gender-Neutral Pronouns, For Well-Meaning Cis Friends and Family
via Them
"From practicing in the mirror to using apps, here are some tips for your cis friends and family members to understand gender-neutral pronouns."
"Like learning a new language, fixing our mistakes can help us solidify the right information as we speak about our trans loved ones. Ultimately, trans family members just want to be respected, and a big part of that respect can be taking the time to gender us correctly without asking us to help you too often."

Resources for Pride Month
National Council for the Social Studies
"These articles and resources have been selected from Social Education, Middle Level Learning, and Social Studies and the Young Learner.
Explore our articles, journals, and publications with resources for incorporating LGBTQ2IA+ studies into your curriculum."

Supporting LGBTQ+ Young People Resource Hub
SPLC Learning for Justice
"We encourage parents, caregivers, educators and community members to support the rights of all children to safety and representation. Advocate for the children and families in your communities who are being harmed."
This new resource hub can be used for exactly that.
The hub includes articles like:
- Building a Just Future (2023)
- Dear Young Person, You Are Valued (2023)
- Inclusive Education Benefits All Children (2022)
- Visibility Is Power (2022)
- Let’s Talk About Nonbinary (2019)
- Honoring LGBTQ Voices During Hispanic Heritage Month (2017)
- LGBTQ and Muslim are Not Dichotomous Identities (2016)
- Seeing All Identities of LGBTQ Youth of Color (2015)

Teaching Hard History: Grades 6-12
SPLC Learning for Justice
"Teaching Hard History resources for middle- and high-school educators include our popular framework, as well as student-facing videos and primary source texts. Educators will also find teaching tools and professional development resources."

Advocating for Teaching Honest History: What Educators Can Do
SPLC Learning for Justice
"Honest and inclusive history education is fundamental to ensuring that students learn from our past, understand how it influences the present and work together to build a better future. Honest history is not something to shy away from nor to avoid teaching for fear of backlash. It is critical that honest histories are communicated with families, caregivers and community members to increase their impact throughout the school community. Developing relationships and open communication can build strong bridges to ensuring that honest history is not just accepted but is ingrained in curricula.

We hope this guide will help educators realize the power they hold to work toward the honest history education that our young people deserve."

Closing the STEM Gap for Girls
Discovery Education
"The need for STEM jobs is expected to grow by 11 percent through 2032, creating more than 1 million STEM occupations in the U.S. alone. With women making up only 34% of the STEM workforce, now is the time to identify and address barriers to STEM education for girls and young women.
From female role models to adding the “A” to STEM, learn more about how gaps in STEM education are affecting girls’ ambitions and what school districts can do to overcome them. Because women should have greater participation and impact in the workplace so that future innovations are as diverse and dynamic as the society we live in."

Why Are Black and Latino Students Shut Out of AP STEM Courses?
The Education Trust
"To increase enrollment of students of color in AP STEM courses, leaders must create positive school climates where students of color feel safe and have a sense of belonging, where they interact with adults who have high expectations for them, there they receive adequate information on how to access AP STEM opportunities, and where they have rigorous, culturally relevant, and identity affirming curricula."

This brief and article cover:

1. Meeting Students’ Aspirations and Interests
2. Creating a Positive School Climate
3. Recommendations (Federal, State, Local/District)

Understanding and Countering Antisemitism and Islamaphobia in Schools
SPLC Learning for Justice
"Amid a rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia, we all need to help ensure young people’s right to an education free from bigotry in an inclusive and supportive environment."

How teachers can support students during Ramadan
PBS NewsHour
"Ramadan is a month in the Islamic calendar when Muslims observe fasting from sunrise to sunset. And it can be a difficult month for many to get through, especially students who have to go through a normal school day without eating or drinking."
"For schools, it’s important to provide an environment for students where they feel safe to practice their religion, but maybe more importantly, one that ensures their well-being during the school day."

Lessons in (In)Equity: An Evaluation of Cultural Responsiveness in Elementary ELA Curriculum
NYU’s Education Justice Research and Organizing Collaborative (EJ-ROC)
“Recently, curriculum has taken center stage in the public conversation about schooling. While there has been mass media coverage of these debates, there is a lack of substantive discussion on culturally responsive education – the educational approach that directly addresses issues of identity, culture and power at the center of these debates. At this moment, NYU Metro Center set out to answer the question: just how culturally responsive are public school curricula?

We worked with a diverse team of public school parents, students and educators to analyze samples of curriculum from three of the nation’s most widely used elementary school English Language Arts (ELA) curricula - McGraw Hill’s Wonders, Savvas’ myView, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s Into Reading - using the Culturally Responsive ELA Curriculum Scorecard.”

This is what our community research team found.

Anti-Defamation League (ADL): Resources for Educators, Parents & Families
Educational Programs & Training
Professional Learning for Educators
Recursos en Español / Resources in Spanish

Free Bystander Intervention Training
RightToBe.org is a nonprofit working to end harassment in all its forms. They believe that everyone deserves the resources to respond to, prevent, and intervene in instances of harassment, offering up a variety of free, 60-90 minute interactive virtual trainings each month, including topics such as:

Bystander Intervention for Educators
Bystander Intervention for Youth: How to Show Up for Others (Grades 8-12)
Bystander Intervention to Stop Anti-Asian/American and Xenophobic Harassment
Bystander Intervention to Stop Antisemitic Harassment
Bystander Intervention to Stop Hate-Based Harassment
Bystander Intervention to Stop Islamophobic and Xenophobic Harassment
Bystander Intervention to Stop Online Harassment: How to Be an Ally When You Witness Abuse Online
Bystander Intervention to Support the Latine Community in Public Spaces
Digital Safety
Four Strategies to Mitigate Implicit Bias

Free Anti-Discrimination Training
The New Jersey Division of Civil Rights "offers trainings aimed at preventing and addressing discrimination through its Education and Training Unit. These interactive sessions educate participants about their rights and responsibilities under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, the New Jersey Family Leave Act, the Fair Chance in Housing Act as well as raise awareness about current anti-bias issues. All trainings are currently being offered for FREE to the public."
The ongoing training includes topics such as:

Affirming LGBTQIA+ Identities in School
Having Anti-Bias Discussions in Class (for Primary Educators)
Having Anti-Bias Discussions in Class (for Secondary Educators)
Recognizing and Responding to Microaggressions
Strategies for Effective Bystander Intervention
Understanding Implicit Bias
Understanding the Needs of LGBTQIA+ Youth
Walking on Eggshells: Navigating the Language of Diversity

Go to Table of Contents.

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FREE POSTERS/PRINTABLES

Classroom Posters
Southern Poverty Law Center: Learning for Justice
Dozens of colorful “One World” posters that would be a good fit for classrooms, libraries and homes, alike are available.

Classroom Posters
Facing History and Ourselves
A collection of downloadable posters for a "reflective learning environment.”

"Reading Like a Historian" Classroom Posters
Digital Inquiry Group
"Remind students what questions to ask when reading historical documents with our classroom posters, available in English and Spanish. Print out and hang up in your classroom or deliver online as PDFs."

Free printable classroom poster, "One World."
Teaching Tolerance
“There are many persons ready to do what is right because in their hearts they know it is right. But they hesitate, waiting for the other fellow to make the first move — and he, in turn, waits for you.”

Classroom Posters
Looking for free inclusive art for your classroom?
Educators, teachers and trainers who DM the artist here or email her here will receive a promo code for free digital downloads from their online shop. See the Back to School collection here.

Poster for Inclusive Libraries
Teachers Pay Teacher
A FREE printable poster in multiple color options for classrooms and libraries by a 5th grade ELA and social studies teacher.

LGBTQIA+ Friendly Poster
School Library Journal and School Book Council
A free printable "Imagining a world with you" free printable poster for libraries and classrooms.

Is it Legit? 5 Steps to Vetting a News Source
News Literacy Project
For Grades: 4-6, 7-9, 10-12+
"Many sources compete for attention online, including partisan blogs and bogus sites posing as legitimate news organizations. It can be tough to know what information to trust. So what does “credibility” look like, and how can you recognize it?
We partnered with SmartNews, a news app for mobile devices, to bring you five steps for vetting news sources. The steps outlined in this infographic can help you cut through the noise and learn how to evaluate sources for signs of credibility – as well as for red flags that signal a source should be avoided"

Go to Table of Contents.

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OTHER "R.E.A.L." TOOLS & TIPS

Articles, advice and other resources that assist with increasing the Representation, Equity, Antiracism and Literary diversity in our libraries, lessons and leaders.

Same/Same/But Different. Creating an Inclusive Kindergarten
Embrace Race
By Madeleine Rogin

How to Respect My Ethnic Name
Video and printable PDF
By Anpu London

How teachers can support students during Ramadan
PBS NewsHour
"Ramadan is a month in the Islamic calendar when Muslims observe fasting from sunrise to sunset. And it can be a difficult month for many to get through, especially students who have to go through a normal school day without eating or drinking."

"For schools, it’s important to provide an environment for students where they feel safe to practice their religion, but maybe more importantly, one that ensures their well-being during the school day."

Addressing Structural Racism with Children
Embrace Race
by Kimberly Narain, MD, PhD, MPH

Antiracism Resources for Teens
Scotch Plains Public Library
Books and databases for grades 6 and up.

Antiracism Resources for Adults
Scotch Plains Public Library
Books and more.

Addressing Bias in NJ Schools
In New Jersey, Black girls are 8x more likely to get schools suspensions than their white counterparts. Unexamined bias in educators and staff can negatively affect their future via this and other ways.
The SPF Public School District's Strategic Plan aims for equity. Deliberately working to prevent our students from being a part of the above statistic is a way to move towards that. (See the SPF's goals & actions here.) Here are some resources to do so:

"How to Create Better, Safer Learning Environments for Girls of Color" by The Education Trust
"How School Discipline Impacts Students’ Social, Emotional and, Academic Development (SEAD)" by The Education Trust

Eliminating Anti-Black Hair Policies at School
Edutopia
"We recognize that students who experience a sense of belonging at school have greater levels of emotional wellness and academic achievement. Yet, as of today, a search for hair discrimination in schools results in more than 30 million hits. There are simply too many examples of Black children’s academic opportunities being impacted by their hair."

Cultures Aren't Costumes Checklist Halloween School Fliers
in English & Spanish
"Many people in our community love Halloween and the magic of dressing up. Part of creating a safe school community for ALL students on Halloween is making sure racially, ethnically, and culturally based costumes are NOT part of our festivities."

Gender Pronouns Explained, And Why You Should Absolutely Respect Kids When They Change Them
Parents Magazine
By Jubilee Heron

LGBTQ+ History in Schools: Why Teachers Need to Prioritize Queer Visibility in Classrooms
Parents Magazine
By Gill Platek

How to Make Your School Book Fair More Inclusive
R.E.A.L. Parents x SPF
School book fairs are a great opportunity to offer a wide selection of titles by new and familiar voices that families can purchase in order to diversify their own bookshelves, that of their kids' classrooms and the school library.

With some deliberate effort, you can be a part of making the school book fairs in your district not only more inclusive, but more successful (they are fundraisers, after all). Here’s how.

What Educators Don’t Know About ADHD (and Need To)
ADDitude Magazine
"Given the prevalence of ADHD, every educator should assume they’ll be teaching at least one student with ADHD (diagnosed or not) — likely many more. But, for myriad reasons, few of us receive adequate information and training about recognizing common ADHD characteristics or bringing out the best in students with ADHD.

This webinar will highlight some ADHD facts that educators need to know, and address some of the myths about ADHD in the classroom. Topics include how ADHD might present in girls, the different types of ADHD (and what they might look like in a classroom), executive function and ADHD, working with families of ADHD students, and easy accommodations that will work for ADHD — and other students — in your classroom. We will also address how undiagnosed and/or untreated ADHD, as well as our own perceptions and tolerance levels for ADHD behaviors, might impact a child’s social, emotional, and academic growth."

An Educators’ Guide to Fortifying Executive Function
ADDitude Magazine
"Executive function (EF) skills are the mental processes that enable us to plan, focus our attention, remember instructions, stay organized, and successfully manage our time. These skills are crucial for student success, but many children with ADHD, learning differences, and co-existing conditions lag behind in EF.

We will provide educators with the tools they need to teach these skills through an academic lens. Integrating these strategies in a classroom helps all students, those with and without ADHD and co-existing conditions."

COVID Resources that Take Race Seriously
Embrace Race
Helpful resources that center the needs of Black, Indigenous and People of Color and other racialized communities most impacted by the COVID-19 crisis.

Go to Table of Contents.

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R.E.A.L. Parents x SPF Book Lists

Book lists for all ages:
These lists include two options each for the reading levels of Adult, Teen, Ages 8-12 and Ages 8 and Under.

US History (and Present) Books for Adults:

Because understanding where we are can help guide us to where we need to go (and how to get there), this list is for those of us who want to do some legwork on our own to learn a fuller, more accurate history of the United States, its people, and its laws. It also includes contemporary insight into where we are now, and how to help improve equity.

Expect this list of non-fiction books to grow and change over time, just like we do.

Go to Table of Contents.

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EDUCATOR GRANTS

EEF SPF Educator Grants
The Education Enrichment Foundation of Scotch Plains-Fanwood
The EEF "funds grant proposals that promote innovative and creative ways for strengthening the learning experience of students in our district. The EEF invites all SPF educators to submit individual or group proposals.
Grants are typically issued annually for the upcoming school year on the following timeline:

Application Available December-January (2024-2025 application period has ended).
Recipients Notified: February/March
EEF Grant Awards Celebration: March/April

Educators Making a Difference Grants
We Need Diverse Books
"These grants will provide up to $2000 per educator and can be used toward buying diverse titles, hosting diversity-focused student or community events, diversity audits of existing collections, or any other project that supports diverse literature."

Learning for Justice Educator Fund
Learning for Justice (LFJ), a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC)
"Learning for Justice’s Educator Fund offers the opportunity to work with LFJ to address systemic inequities within education. Throughout our partnership, we offer ongoing guidance and critical resources. With help from your expertise about your own school community, we intend to collaboratively generate innovative solutions that promote affirming school climates, promote student action and raise everyone’s consciousness."

Go to Table of Contents.

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FAQs ON BIAS & INCLUSION TRAINING FOR EDUCATORS

From the SPF School District Restart Plan, page six (Updated 01/27/21):
“Equity
The Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District is deeply dedicated to improving anti-racism education in all our schools. We are proud of our diverse community of learners and remain committed to taking intentional action to celebrate that diversity. The process to improve our practices and curriculum is ongoing work. The following initiatives highlight some of our initiatives but do not represent our finished product to ensure that every student feels represented. To that end, the district is committed to:

Hiring a student assistance specialist focused on diversity and inclusion.
Continuing the process to be a certified high school in the Anti-Defamation League's No Place For Hate program.
Supporting professional development opportunities for administration and staff on antiracism education, implicit bias, and systemic bias.
Continued curriculum review to ensure inclusive practices and materials.
Continued outreach with community organizations focused on diversity and inclusion.”

In line with the third bulleted item on the list, the SPF BoE approved a $30,000 budget for Inclusion and Bias Training for administrators and educators as part of their professional development. This training by the Institute for Teaching Diversity and Social Justice (a leader in this sector that has been doing this work since 2007) has been going on throughout this school year, and will continue.

Q: What is Bias and Inclusion Training for the employees of educational institutions?

In short, it is a layer of professional development training for school staff that helps educators and administrators of all backgrounds, identities and experiences more confidently teach the curriculum to students of all backgrounds, identities and experiences in a more fruitful and inclusive, less harmful way.

These "tools of culturally responsive teaching practices and anti-bias resources help educators to revise curricula and learning materials and develop teaching strategies for diverse classrooms." (via IDSJ)

The diversity in the classroom includes -- but is not limited to -- race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, nation of origin, physical ability, physical attributes, socioeconomic status and family dynamic.

This is not a class that students take, yet every single child in every classroom benefits from having educators who have received this kind of training. It is about respect, acknowledgement and inclusion of everyone in the room--and beyond.

Q: Why do school administrators and educators need bias and inclusion training?

1. It is natural for everyone to have biases, but some biases can be harmful in an educational setting.

Training educators and administrators to see their own biases can help them make more deliberate, inclusive choices in the classroom that benefits all students.

“Teachers make on-the-spot decisions every day — whom to call on to answer a question, when to ask a student to redo an assignment, what homework to assign. But each of those decisions, as research demonstrates, may be tinged with unconscious bias, particularly around issues of race.”

From Uprooting Systemic Bias in Schools via Harvard School of Education

“If a student doesn’t feel accepted or seen or heard in their classroom spaces, and at a most basic level feel safe, if that’s not being met, then it’s harder for them to actually be ready and be in a place to learn.”

From 5 Things Educators Can Do to Address Bias in Their School via the National Education Association EdJustice

2. Libraries in schools or classrooms that are limited in who is represented in the books they carry (both the characters and the people who wrote/illustrated them) can be harmful to all students.

Training educators and administrators in how to see their own biases when choosing which books to buy and/or include in their curriculum can help them make more deliberate choices for a more inclusive experience that represents the wide variety of students in their classrooms and beyond.

“When you look in a library, it’s going to be mostly white subjects, white authors, it doesn’t even matter what you’re looking for. For young people trying to formulate what they can do in life, I don’t think we realize the message that sends.

We talk about the beauty of imagination and books, right? You can imagine yourself being anything. But that sentiment usually comes from people who always see some sort of representation of themselves in the books. But if [people in books] never look like you, that sends a message too. That actually activates your imagination in a negative way—that you never see a black scientist, you never see an Asian politician. These things limit. The amount of imagination we’re asking of our young people of color is astounding.

But it also affects white students, because it limits what they think their classmates of color can do. This has a real impact on how we see the world, how we support our systems. The young people are the carriers of our systems. They’re going to inherit it all, and we need them to imagine something better, something more inclusive. We nurture that by showing diverse voices, showing diverse histories, and really giving them a new idea.”

From Educators and Race: A Conversation with Author Ijeoma Oluo on Tackling Systemic Racism in U.S. Education via School Library Journal

3. When an educator says they “don’t see color,” that makes it impossible for them to see each student as an individual with their own unique experiences.

By making educators more comfortable with seeing each student for who they are, they are more able to ensure true inclusion and representation in their classrooms, curriculum, and engagement with students.

“When well-meaning people with good intentions say, "I don't see color," an ethnic minority will internalize that as meaning, "You don't see me." Part of the problem with our country’s desire to be “post-racial” and color-blind in terms of seeing the inherent worth of an individual regardless of skin color, is that you can dismiss all the concerns, experiences, and real-world issues of racism that plagues this country from both an individual and larger societal level.”

From "I Don't See Color." Then you don't see me via Psychology Today

4. Textbooks have either not included, swept over, or deliberately altered the history of slavery and racism in the United States, leaving generations of its citizens ignorant of its relevance to American history and where we are today.

Those who make decisions on which textbooks and other materials to purchase and use in curriculums should be made aware of what to look for when doing so in order to get more thorough, factual information in front of students.

“In Webster’s [History of the United States textbook] there was next to nothing about the institution of slavery, despite the fact that it was a central American institution. There were no African Americans ever mentioned. When Webster wrote about Africans, it was extremely derogatory, which was shocking because those comments were in a textbook. What I realized from his book, and from the subsequent ones, was how they defined “American” as white and only as white. Anything that was less than an Anglo Saxon was not a true American... I came across one textbook that declared on its first page, ‘This is the White Man’s History.’”

From How textbooks taught white supremacy: A historian steps back to the 1700s and shares what's changed and what needs to change via The Harvard Gazette

5. Even when teachers want to teach students about the history of racism and slavery, many feel ill-equipped to do so, fearing they will cause harm during the lessons.

Training teachers how to better understand their own implicit biases, see the biases in materials and conversations that come up, and then show them how to teach difficult subjects in an effective way that limits the chance of causing harm to students can increase their confidence to teach hard history in age-appropriate ways.

“The Teaching Tolerance project surveyed nearly 1,800 K-12 social studies teachers. While nearly 90 percent agreed that ‘teaching and learning about slavery is essential to understanding American history,’ many reported feeling uncomfortable teaching slavery and said they get very little help from their textbooks or state standards.”

From Why Schools Fail To Teach Slavery's 'Hard History' via NPR (See the full study by the Southern Poverty Law Center that it discusses here.)

6. Bias is something we all have (adults and children), not something we learn. What our school district does is not just help our administration and staff understand this fact and see how it affects decisions on both small and large scales, but also the students through their improved, inclusive, more conscientious teaching practices.

A bias isn't always necessarily a bad thing, but it absolutely can be harmful. This is why bias acknowledgement and prevention of those that undermine equity are in both legislative and local mandates for our students' education; doing so helps chip away at both the process of harm that some students in the district still regularly face (due to both individual and systemic biases against their race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, nation of origin, physical ability, physical attributes, socioeconomic status, family dynamic, etc.), and the progress of educating students who are less likely to make decisions that harm.

Honest conversation about this and learning in a safe environment that is both inclusive and encourages students to make more conscientious decisions has shown to reduce the harm of biases. Students are more likely to grow into respectful people in their personal, educational, professional, and civic lives.

“children begin to show bias from an early age. Not only do they absorb the stereotypes they see, but they also become "increasingly attuned to social category labels, social status, and the biases exhibited by family members”"

From Bias Starts as Early as Preschool, but Can Be Unlearned:
A new study finds that children show bias at a surprisingly young age. But teachers have ways to address this and create a welcoming classroom. via Edutopia

Q: Why is the SPF school district faculty receiving bias and inclusion training?

From the SPF School District Superintendent's Office:
"Dr. Mast, the District Superintendent, was motivated to move this work forward for a range of reasons, including a number of bias cases she encountered such as reports on student discipline, Social Media defamation and threats, and racially charged graffiti. The death of George Floyd also increased the community voice in the need to make both SPF and the country more just. Students and families have come forward requesting that the district engage in additional efforts to build a more inclusive community.

This professional development is a continuation of diversity, inclusion and equity work that the district has been engaged in for the past five years or more.

This training is designed to help educators examine their own practice to ensure that all students and all families feel like they belong to our district community and are able to access all the services that make us an excellent school system.

The objective is to increase the district's collective awareness on matters of both individual bias and institutional bias in order to make SPF a better place for teaching and learning for all.“

Q: What do we know about the organization that is doing the bias and inclusion training for our educators and administration in the district?

The Institute for Teaching Diversity and Social Justice (IDSJ), founded by Dr. Khyati Joshi and Shanelle Henry, has been receiving accolades for its approach and results since 2007. Dr. Joshi has been a highly sought-after expert, educator, writer and speaker in this field for two decades. Learn more about IDSJ and Dr. Joshi here:

About IDSJ
Praise for / Testimonials About IDSJ
IDSJ's Social Justice Education Recommended Reading List and Listening List
About Dr. Joshi | Awards & Recognition | Appearances | CV

Have more questions? We strongly encourage you to go straight to the source for the most accurate information: the SPF School District. Their website will give you access to the school communications, contact information for the District office (such as the Superintendents), curriculum details and more.

Go to Table of Contents.

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FAQs ABOUT CRITICAL RACE THEORY

Q: What is CRT?

In short, Critical Race Theory is a 40-plus-year-old framework of legal academic study in which the reasons how and why systemic racism exists and how to remove it from the various systems are looked at in great depth. It is a methodology, not an ideology.

Learn more here.

“In this post, we explain what Critical Race Theory is while sharing the thoughts from teachers on teaching about racism to their students…[Please] read the sources as homework.” Sources:

Just what is critical race theory and what's it doing in a nice field like education? (1998) | International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education article by Gloria Ladson-Billings
Why are states banning critical race theory? (2021) | The Brookings Institution article by Rashawn Ray and Alexandra Gibbons
What Do Teachers Think About Discussing Racism in Class? We Asked Them (2021) | Education Week article by Ileana Najarro
What Is Critical Race Theory, and Why Is It Under Attack? (2021) | Education Week article by Stephen Sawchuk
Racial/Ethnic Enrollment in Public Schools (Updated 2021) | Annual Report on National Center for Education Statistics